Daily Image - May 2012 Archive

01 May 12. Completing another long (14 hour) day at the property, we had some very contrasting lighting for the passage beginning with sections (beams) of bright light falling on the opposite shore, giving way to sections of land evenly lit, which gave way to some darker areas, and then further north completely gray skies presiding over squalls of rain and whitecaps on the water. All-in-all quite a show in what may have been no more than 40 miles of distance. I gave some thought to trying to capture it but decided I was just too tired to attempt it. But not many days earlier we had another crossing in which we had some other interesting weather, this time in the form of cloud formations, and I did attempt to capture it. Mount Rainier was showing well, and the clouds simply enhanced what would have been a rather pretty crossing even if they had been absent. The clouds however were not the only show, and the additional attraction is something for which I can't account. Looking at the opposite shoreline you will see two horizontal lines running parallel to each other; I've never seen this before and have no idea as to what they might have been. Just something to ponder. ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f /11.

02 May 12. The last couple of stormy days have brought some seemingly unseasonable weather, with last night being almost bitter cold bringing fresh snow to the mountains, hail in parts of King county, and some ugly rainy weather to Kitsap county. As we were crossing the Sound this late morning in some of that weather the vessel came to a full stop and a burial at sea was performed. The sky was a bit on the dark side and I thought it somewhat appropriate, not for the deceased, but rather as a dark time in the lives of those left behind. The combination of cold and bleak weather made me think a bit about how nice it had been back in January when we visited the central western coast of Mexico. The evening prior to our first port call, the ship's Master, Captain van der Loo, advised all on board who were going ashore to be certain to take with them a very high quality camera in that should they miss the ships departure, they would want to get a good photo of it, as that would be the last they would see of it; the ship would wait for no one, PERIOD!. He said it with a bit of a chuckle, but he was dead serious. Soooo, just in case, I took a good camera with me and got a reasonably good photo of it; actually I got a photo of it in both ports of call, but liked the one from Cabo the best. This is exactly how it looked, so you can imagine how much we disliked it. ;-) ISO 200; 1/800 sec @ f / 8.

03 May 12. Since I have no idea as to the actual compass layout of Puerto Vallarta, I'm going to fall back on left and right facing the bay. Any of you know the exact compass heading for this area are welcome to let me know, but it won't impact the story any. We started our casual stroll along the Malecon from a location directly in front of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and traveled to the right facing the bay. It took us the better part of an hour to reach the end, due both to me wanting to stop and take a photo here and there, primarily of the art forms available, and Jan wanting to do the same plus get in a bit of window shopping, while simultaneously attempting to keep some space between her and the generally annoying street hawkers. (She wasn't always successful) There was a lot of material available for me to photograph, but the most interesting, to say nothing about challenging, was a living piece of art, a small (2 foot high perhaps) white heron that was surfing along the shoreline working with the incoming waves. The water was soapy white, and looked as if it had been whopped in a blender along with some thickener, all of which gave the scene a bit if a heavenly appearance. With the heron running along the edge of the outgoing flow and at the same time trying to avoid the oncoming waves, it was a lot of fun trying to get the bird and the water positioned just the way I thought it should be. This shot comes about as close as I got to getting the perfect composition, and good enough to share. I never found out what was causing the water's appearance, but it almost looked good enough to consume, with or without rotisserie bird. ISO 200; 1/1250 sec @ f / 9.

04 May 12. One of the simultaneously interesting and annoying things I experienced as a kid growing up in Seattle was the prevalence of certain birds in the downtown area, especially in the historic district. We called the birds simply pigeons, and it was said in a bit of a disparaging manner. It wasn't until we had our own dove, Tony, about whom I've written before, that I came to understand that these lowly "dirty" birds were properly known as Rock Doves. I recall as a youth that on occasion I would take some time to notice their sometimes brilliantly colored feathers, but it wasn't until our first tour in the Navy that I gained an appreciation for them as a neighbor of ours who, like us, lived in Navy housing, raised them as a hobby. He had much to say about them and I found my appreciation for them greatly enhanced. Now when I see one I take the time to look at it closely and enjoy the beautiful plumage. It wasn't until our trip south last January that I was aware that these are either international travelers or simply located all over the world. We saw this particular individual getting a drink in the city fountain just below Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish on a warm Puerto Vallarta morning. The lighting was very harsh, and the bird exuberant in its drinking, so I didn't get the plumage quite as distinctly as I would have liked, but I was happy to have seen the bird in time to fire off perhaps three shots before it was time for us both to depart to awaiting adventures. ISO 200; 1/200 sec @ f / 7.1

07 May 12. As we are in the process of packing up this house to make what should be our terminal move, we are having to make decisions about keeping some of the many collections of things we have been accumulating and storing these past 45 years. Having moved in excess of 30,000 pounds of "stuff" when we came to Seattle, it is likely high time for us to downsize some of our"stuff", especially in the book and magazine departments. Much of the books were do to our teaching and/or research efforts, neither of which we are still doing, but it is hard to part with specific portions of one's past. Among our collections of "stuff" are coffee mugs, of which we likely have several hundred, most of which are still packed and up in the attic. Some of them are for certain keepsakes, like those we got on our first tour from the Philadelphia Orchestra funding programs, mugs that have an image of a composer, such as Bach, and which read on the front Bach's mug and on the back mugs Bach. Another which reads Handel's mug on the front and mug's Handle on the side. We have several of those for different composers and certainly we need to keep these. I also collected a number of plates with images on them; most notably a set of sailing ships of the 1700s, which I also think appropriate for the keep bin. But there is much we need to part with if this new home isn't going to look like a pig pen. While in the process of having to deal with decisions of keep and toss, I thought of collections, well, more appropriately displays for sale, of plates that we looked at while on the cruise back in January. Many of them were quite impressive, and all very colorful. We considered getting a couple but, with some effort, persuaded ourselves that we really didn't need more plates, especially collectibles. So we reluctantly passed on that opportunity, except that I did take a photo or two for remembrances sake. ISO 200; 1/100 sec @ f / 4.

08 May 12. Today's shot was taken in a neighbors yard in late March while we were out walking the dog. Both Jan and I like Lenten Roses, and this particular specimen caught my eye, so I grabbed a few shots to see what I could do with it. The image has been manipulated a fair amount, but nothing more than some of the great photographers of all time would have been likely to do. It's been cropped, experienced a bit of color enhancement via the use of curves to increase contrast, and then the flowers themselves have been brightened, darkened, or desaturated to create the plant as you are seeing it. Plus I've substantially blurred the background, the only change that was intentionally heavily applied. All of these alterations, excepting the blur, to the original have been very minimal, and I would venture of an amount that you likely would not suspect of having occurred, but together they make for a much different appearance than that of the living plant. This was all done for fun, being curious as to what I could get away with and still have a very realistic looking plant. IF you've been keeping track of the techniques I've been describing over the last several months, I'll wager you may be able to determine specifically what I did to the original. Have a go at it. ISO 200; 1/200 sec @ f / 7.1.

09 May 12. As these 12 - 15 hour work days and back-to-back 7 day work weeks drag on, I'm fining it harder and harder to get motivated to write these daily missives, and even more difficult to find the time needed to produce the images, so I'm falling back on material that has been generally back logged for the present mailings, and will be continuing to so do until we make the move. Then we will be off the air for a week or more, and that will occur sometime in the next two weeks. (A failed electrical inspection today has set us back a few days.) So the submission for today is one for me, something bright and cheery. One of the things I really enjoyed while we were visiting in central Mexico was the bright colors that were a part of most everything, especially in clothing and household goods. It just made you feel good about things in general, and I'm thinking that we may well find a means of employing just such a concept in the new abode. With rooms currently in bold yellows, creams, and off reds/browns, I think we may just continue with these types of earth tones, save perhaps for the light violet color used in the room for the grand daughters, and likely a bold green for the master bedroom. But for the most part the colors of warmth will predominate. And, being just paint, we can always change our minds and go with something different whenever the mood strikes us. ISO 200; 1/800 sec @ f / 8.

10 May 12. After lamenting that free time was a thing of the past, I got off the project early enough today to not only take a few shots of botanicals in the yard, but to work over several images from previous shoots. This is one from last Sunday. As a bit of an introduction to the name of the image, there is an old joke about FedEx and UPS merging with the new company name being FedUp. On our short list of favorite restaurants in the local area is one fish and chip shop at Fisherman's Terminal. As lots of folks apparently either can't eat all their chips (french fries) or just prefer to share them with the gulls, there are several signs saying don't feed the birds, all of which Jan conveniently misses every time we visit and have dinner at that little hole in the wall. This past visit I thought I'd attempt to capture the action and was pleased with a few of the shots I got. Today's submission is among them, and, while it is not compositionally "correct" with respect to all the "rules." I've left it as is to provide for a better understanding of what is taking place. The gulls sit on the blue railing at the base of the marina begging for food; you will note one of the fishing vessels directly behind the rail.. Jan has just parted with a fry that this particular bird is in the process of swallowing while simultaneously lifting off and taking flight, hence the title of the image fed_up. It has just launched pushing of feet first and this capture is of the first beat of the wings. There was sufficient back light to provide some nice detail of the feathers and a little pinking of the feet. One full loop and it was back to try its luck again. ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f / 5.6.

11 May 12. Returning home Wednesday evening I noticed a grouping of California poppies alongside the road not far from the house. I told myself that if Thursday's lighting was good, I needed to take a few minutes out of the day and do a little work with them. Since Thursday was to be a day off from the project, to catch up on the plethora of things not being attended to with all the cross county work, it seemed like the perfect plan, and it was. My original thoughts were that I would tackle the project in the evening light, but returning from an errand in the early afternoon turned out to be about as good as I could ask for, so I took about 10 minutes out of the day to see what I could do with a long but narrow stretch of sidewalk bulkhead flowers. After transferring the shoot to the computer, I found I was pleasantly surprised at how well the material presented and elected to work up several different versions of the poppies. This is a straight shot save for some critical cropping - to get the effect I wanted - with the exception of one spent blossom which I toyed with removing but in the end didn't. I'm thinking however that I may well remove it in another effort to see if I prefer the difference. You might also want to try playing with the image by removing that one spire to see if you like it better. The purists in the photographic world would definitely want it removed, but I have mixed feeling about it. In once sense it is a bit distracting, sticking up all alone like it is, but in another it provides for added perspective of the entire garden. So I leave it up to you as to which you would prefer and imagine that at least one of you will send me your preferred rendition. ISO 200; 1/800 sec @ f /10. As things are turning out, I will likely be signing off at the conclusion of next Fridays' mailing (18 May 12). I expect it will be between 10 days to 2 weeks of downtime and then back on-line.

12 May 12. About 10 minutes after sending out the image for Friday, I received a return email from a friend and fellow photographer on the East Coast saying that she liked my shot better than the one on the cover of the June issue of Outdoor Photographer. As I hadn't yet seen that issue due to total mess of packing up the abode, I asked Jan if she had seen it and she said its near the couch, so I went looking and found it. Sure enough, the two images were very similar. Now OP does a very nice job of crediting the photographers whose work they feature, and for the cover photos there is a regular column talking about the photo. The OP cover photo of poppies was taken in Antelope Valley, CA, and there was a discussion about getting to Antelope Valley CA. Poppy Reserve and the trials and tribulations of getting the poppy image in that location. As I was reading the complete article I couldn't help but think how often it is that we travel, in some cases, all over the world, to get what is literally right under our noses, or feet, in this case. If we would just stop for a moment and observe what is around us we might find our photographic lives far more satisfying. Of course, taking a shot, as I did, of some flowers growing in what is no more than a small patch of dirt against a stone embankment can't possibly compete with the grandeur of Antelope Valley, but if all one is looking to do is a macro shot, and I'm not putting down macro work by any means, you don't have to travel very far to get the shot. My location was walking distance from our house; I visited it again today, and will likely do so again tomorrow because it is fun to have the chance to photograph something so photogenic so easily. As the patch is situated for perfect evening back lit shots, it is the perfect way to begin the evening. I'm sharing with you tonight the shot from the first shoot that is Jan's favorite of that series. It is very different from both my Friday submission and the OP cover shot, but you may appreciate it equally for the differences between the two. ISO 200; 1/320 sec @ f / 9.

14 May 12. With the last few days of warm weather coupled with the rains that have preceded them, the azaleas and rhododendrons are putting on quite a show all over the greater Puget Sound area. You pick a color and it is likely that you can find it on one or more plants. We picked a vibrant yellow color for our laundry room and have a potted azalea to match it. The azalea came first, been with us for a couple of years and, in fact, we purchased it for the new home, so we are just a bit behind schedule if calculated by the plants that have been growing in the yard that were/are to be a part of the new landscape. In the middle of last week the specimen in our yard was looking particularly nice, especially with the evening light shining through its petals. With a slight breeze accompanying the light, I shot it at a shutter speed I hoped would stop any unwanted movement and elected a moderate depth of field (dof) to control where your eye would fall on the image. Being a close-up type of shot, the f stop used provided for less dof than you might otherwise expect at f/10. My intent was to draw your eye to the green stigma, a color I can't say I've seen on all that many stigma. ISO 200; 1/640 sec @ f /10.

15 May 12. The image for today has been submitted for competition so I'll be curious as to how it fares. Pressing my luck and going with two more poppy images this week, the one for tonight and likely the last image this Friday before we move, but that one will be blue. I believe I submitted a blue poppy once prior, but that was one I created employing color replacement tools using a digital editor. On my top 10 favorite flower list resides the blue poppy, a flower that is hard to find and even harder to grow. Two members of this list, both local, advised me today of where I can go find and shoot them this week, so a break in our packing schedule will have to occur so I can take advantage of the opportunity to both shoot them and share with you. The site has limited hours, none of which are during the times I would like to be shooting these delicate flowers, so between then and now I have to decide the time of the shoot. If I can locate a phone number for the location I'll likely call for advice on what the best time of day would be which undoubtedly will be affected by how the sunlight hits the location. do stand by. Meanwhile, the three days of shooting the local group of CA Poppies was both fun and a challenge, the challenge primarily being courtesy of the wind. The lighting however was fantastic, plenty of it, and coming from behind to provide for some dramatic back lighting, my favorite as most of you are aware. This image obviously enjoys that type of lighting, and it helps greatly to convey the absolutely lovely orange colors of the CA Poppy. The shot probably suffers a bit from the two diagonally departing stalks in the two bottom corners, but it was not of sufficient concern for me to remove them. Other than some cropping and a small curves adjustment for added contrast, this is basically what the camera saw. ISO 200; 1/250th sec @ f / 7.1

16 May 12. After one full day of packing, I'm ready for a trip to somewhere enchanted; somewhere perhaps where the hills are made of gold and the water silver. 19 book size boxes and 10 medium sized boxes and I finished just one room. Now that room happens to be the room where I kept all my photo related stuff: books, cameras, hardware, and 33mm slides. In fact, 57 three ring binders of slides; I won't admit to how many individual slides that amounts too, but it is more than a few. Ahhh, I hear you say, "aren't you glad you switched to digital!" Well, let's think about that. In the good ol' film days, recall that the ol" days were always the good ones, for the most part you didn't make back ups (dupes) of your material, you just kept them in some archival kind of container that was designed to not damage the original slides. Then there was the slide projector, screen, and a few slide trays, perhaps even a dissolve unit if, like me, you put on slide shows. Not all that much stuff in reality. Now that we've gone digital, we have the computer, likely a laptop (portable) with its associated hard drives (internal AND external), desktop with its associated hard drives (internal and MANY LARGE external for back up), optical disc drives so we can write the files onto something "theoretically" archival (also requiring you to keep the optical drives used to make the back up discs), card readers to get the files from the camera to the computer, software to support the hardware (which hopefully won't fail to read the older stuff in the future), screens that we must calibrate requiring expensive equipment to do so, interface hardware to work with the computer (mice, pens ,tablets, touch screens, etc), and how could we be without the internet to share our work. And more and more and. . . . . . Hmmmmmmm, perhaps that older analog approach wasn't so bad after all. Plus one couldn't cheat, oops, I mean "adjust" the shot after the fact. What you shot was what you got - WYSWWYG. But adjusting the image is such fun, especially if you need to just get away from it all now and then. And this one is highly "adjusted", but then, I said to begin with that I needed to get away to somewhere enchanted. ISO 250; 1/200 sec @ f / 8.

17 May 12. Back to reality today and back to basics. With the lavender growing some in the front yard, that is the one plant that survived last year's loss of most everything purple, I began thinking of this year's Lavender Festival and that we won't have any ferry hassle involved with it this year. And with purple being close to blue, the thought of blue poppies comes to mind. Of course the weather for tomorrow has returned to possible rain, so the planned shoot for the afternoon may not happen; just have to wait and see. One way or the other it will be a blue day, bright blue if I get the shoot in, and dark blue if I get rained out. Either way, I can always step outside the house and try my luck on the warmer blue and shoot the lavender a bit. This particular image was shot late last July, but as it has one of my favorite subjects as a main character, I thought I'd share it. This individual was so intent on feeding that it let me get quite close and shoot away. It worked its way around the entire blossom before either getting tired of my observing or expending the supply of food. This was taken with the zoom at full extension and hand held. ISO 400; 1/250 sec @ f /13.

18 May 12. The weather held, we badly needed a break from packing, and so, based on the recommendations of three on this mailing list, we headed out around 1300 and remained until almost 1600 to the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden. For those of you in the area, if you haven't been before, GO NOW! It was an amazing place to visit and while I've known about the Rhododendron Garden for years - hard to miss as there is a sign for it on I-5 - I never knew that it housed hundreds of other plants in lovely settings/gardens. We went of course to get the blue poppies, but there was much more blue than that and, as our GPS guided us to the headquarters instead of the garden, we had the delightful pleasure of also photographing a filed of Lupine set against a meadow of black headed grasses undulating with the wind. A wonderful sight to behold and photograph. But there was even more blue in the garden itself, and I'm guessing at this point, but I'd estimate we saw a couple dozen plants boasting blue flowers. The garden appears to be its peak right now, and while I have no doubt there will be color of some sort all year, I don't think it could be more colorful than it is currently. I owe a big debt of thanks to the three who "gently" pushed me to that garden, so thanks Bruce, Gretchen, and Allan. We had a wonderful day walking the paths and chatting with another photographer thinking how sad it was that we had just this day "discovered" such a treasure and one we will definitely return to many times. One of the best parts of the garden was the gift shop area where you could buy lots of the plants displayed in the garden, especially the blue poppy, so after we get settled in we plan to by a flat of the poppies, and many other plants, to add some color to our little forest. ISO 200; 1/250 sec @ f / 9. Next image will be after we complete our move to a new abode, likely 28 May 12.